Why This Could be the Time to Register Short Barrel Rifles (SBRs)

During the last eight years the popularity of firearms regulated under the National Firearms Act (NFA) has skyrocketed. NFA firearms include, silencers (or suppressors), short barrel rifles (SBR), short barrel shotguns (SBS), and machine guns (full auto). Silencers are by far the most popular NFA firearms as hundreds of thousands of people transfer them from FFLs using ATF Form 5320.4 (Form 4). A very small number of people apply to ATF to make their own silencers by submitting ATF Form 5320.1 (Form 1), but few people possess the skills and resources to build their own suppressors. The opposite is true for SBRs. A large number of applicants submit a Form 1 to build an SBR, particularly because of the ease of swapping a short upper receiver onto the AR15 platform.

Before building an SBR, the applicant must register it by submitting Form 1 to ATF along with a $200 tax payment. The applicant/registrant may build the SBR after receiving a tax stamp from ATF as proof of their tax payment and approved registration. Before ATF issues the tax stamp, the applicant should not have possession of all the components for building the SBR, except the applicant may obtain a stripped lower receiver to be used for the build. In fact, the Form 1 requires the applicant to identify the original manufacturer of the lower receiver as well as its serial number, unless the applicant intends to create a new serial number for the SBR. Once the applicant receives the tax stamp, the SBR may be built at any time in the future.

Currently an applicant may be a trust, such as the Gun Trust USA™ design. An application by a trust skips the current requirements for fingerprints, photographs, and a signature from your chief law enforcement officer (CLEO). A trust may allow other people to have legal possession of NFA firearms, and a trust could allow an entire gun collection to be inherited without a public record in the court system. Additionally, a trust has the advantage of submitting a Form 1 using the ATF eFile system. By using this simple and quick internet portal, the applicant would receive the tax stamp by email.

This process will slightly change under the 41F rules which will take effect for applications to register NFA firearms postmarked July 13 or later. Starting on that date, Form 1’s and Form 4’s would need the new ATF Form 5320.23 (Form 23) attached. Form 23 would require the fingerprints and photographs of each ‘responsible person’ connected to the application. ATF has not yet confirmed whether ATF eFile will continue to be an option after July 12. It appears likely ATF will allow a gun dealer to collect and submit fingerprints and photographs for an applicant. Also, applicants using Gun Trust USA™ will have a simple way to temporarily remove the other responsible persons in their trusts so those people may avoid the need to complete Form 23. On a side note, if responsible persons are added or removed from a trust, they are not subject Form 23 if they are not in the trust at the moment a Form 1 or a Form 4 is submitted.

We have designed Gun Trust USA™ to minimize the effects of Form 23 so our customers can enjoy the full use of their trusts for the registration, possession, and inheriting of NFA firearms. Nevertheless, many people are taking the opportunity to register as many NFA firearms as possible before July 13 because Form 23 is a reminder that the laws could change for the worse, particularly as the the presidential campaign season makes gun control an even hotter topic.

NFA applicants face a choice. Do they buy and transfer every NFA firearm on their wish list so the Form 4s can be postmarked before July 13? Presumably few people could afford every item on their wish list, which is why it is called a wish list. So which firearms might be delayed to the future. Before you delay the purchase of a complete SBR, consider the option of registering an SBR to built at a later date as described above. The up front costs of that project would be the tax stamp ($200) and the stripped lower. As long as the Form 1 is postmarked no later than July 12, the new Form 23 would not apply. Thus many applicants are now registering multiple stripped lower receivers to save for a rainy day. This is dramatically more affordable than buying the same number of complete SBRs for transfer. Therefore, you would be spreading out the costs for those SBRs, which could free up your budget for transferring the suppressors on your wish list.

Whether you are transferring or making NFA firearms, your first step should be creating your own NFA gun trust now using Gun Trust USA™. Simply complete our online questionnaire at this link. You can complete your documents in minutes for as little as $129.95. You will be offered additional options, including our popular Turnkey Package, and at any time you take advantage of our “Ask a Lawyer” program to request a discounted consultation with an attorney in our support network.

There’s never been a more important time to use Gun Trust USA™ to create your own NFA trust because ATF regulations are changing. We know of no other NFA gun trust solution to offer an updated design for the new regulations like Gun Trust USA™.

Our solution will help you easily register firearms regulated under the National Firearms Act (“NFA”), such as silencers, short barrel rifles, short barrel shotguns, and full auto. We offer the most up-to-date design to help you and your loved safely handle and inherit your SBRs, suppressors, machine guns, and other NFA firearms. We’re proud of how our user-friendly design will provide you a simple method to reduce red tape and to obey the law.

Our optional Turnkey Package is also very special. By requesting this optional service, we will print your Gun Trust USA™ documents on durable paper. We will flag all the signature lines so signing the documents with your local notary public will be simple and fast. We will assemble your documents in our custom 3-ring binder, which has many tabs to organize all your documents related to your gun collection, including receipts, NFA tax stamps, training certifications, concealed carry permits, hunting licenses, and more. Our binder will keep you organized and help your successors find all the information they will need to inherit and manage your gun collection in the future. Additionally, our Turnkey Package will include tactical document bags to protect the photocopies of the trust documents and NFA tax stamps you must keep with your silencers, short barrel rifles, etc. This truly is a Turnkey Package making your Gun Trust USA™ documents ready to go and always organized.

At any time you can take advantage of our ‘Ask a Lawyer’ program if you have any questions. This extraordinary service enables you to request a discounted telephone consultation with an attorney, who can answer your questions about NFA gun trusts and federal law. None of the ‘do-it-yourself’ gun trust forms offer you this level of support.

Want to learn more about Gun Trust USA™ services as well as a variety of NFA gun trust topics, including transferring suppressors, BATFE regulations, making short barrel rifles, estate plans for inheriting firearms, and more? Visit our Frequently Asked Questions.

Categories

Disclaimer. Communication between you and Gun Trust USA, LLC is protected by our Privacy Policy and not by attorney-client privilege. Gun Trust USA, LLC is not a law firm and cannot provide legal advice. We provide information and forms and you are responsible for appropriately using this material. Your use of this site is subject to our Terms of Use.